Air India plane crash: Lone survivor on seat 11A jumped out of emergency exit, says police

Air India plane crash: The lone survivor of the 787-8 Dreamliner crash that claimed the lives of at least 265 people, including the rest of the 241 on board, jumped out of the emergency exit to save his life. Ramesh Viswashkumar was seated on 11A in AI 171 from Ahmedabad to London. 

The 40-year-old British national told the media that he was travelling to Britain with his brother after visiting family in India.

The survivor was sitting near an emergency exit and managed to jump out. It was not clear whether Viswashkumar managed to jump out before the plane made impact.

"When I got up, there were bodies all around me. I was scared. I stood up and ran. There were pieces of the plane all around me. Someone grabbed hold of me and put me in an ambulance and brought me to the hospital," he told Hindustan Times.

He said that his brother, Ajay, was seated in a different row on the plane. "He was travelling with me and I can't find him anymore. Please help me find him," he said.

Videos of a man in a white T-shirt and dark pants, limping on the street, and being helped by a medic, was doing the rounds on social media. He seemed to have bruises on his face and resembled the description of Viswashkumar in the hospital. A man asked him where all the other passengers were, to which he responded “they’re all inside”. 

Vidhi Chaudhary, a senior police officer in Ahmedabad said, "He was near the emergency exit and managed to escape by jumping out the emergency door.” 

His family members confirmed to Reuters that they had spoken to Viswashkumar, who claimed to be “fine” but did not share other details. The family had not heard anything about his brother. 

Around 265 people were killed when the Air India crashed moments after taking off from Ahmedabad in what is believed to be the world's worst aviation disaster in a decade. The Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, carrying 242 people, was headed for Gatwick Airport near London. 

Ahmedabad police chief GS Malik said the bodies recovered may include passengers and people on the ground. Among the dead was Vijay Rupani, the former chief minister of Gujarat. Relatives have been asked to provide DNA samples to help identify the deceased, said state health secretary Dhananjay Dwivedi.

Parts of the plane's fuselage were scattered around the burning building. The tail of the aircraft was stuck on top of the building.

This was the first crash involving the Dreamliner, a wide-body airliner that began commercial flights in 2011. The plane involved first flew in 2013 and was delivered to Air India in January 2014, according to Flightradar24.

US aerospace safety consultant Anthony Brickhouse noted that videos showed the landing gear was down at a stage of flight when it is usually retracted. He said this suggested the plane appeared to be on approach to a runway. Indian Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu said the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau has started a formal inquiry. A high-level committee with experts from various fields will examine the matter in detail.

Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg said he and the head of Boeing's commercial airplane division cancelled plans to attend next week's Paris Air Show, the industry's largest event. A team of Boeing experts is ready to assist investigators. Air India CEO Campbell Wilson said the investigation will take time and expressed deep sorrow over the incident.